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TomTom's new sat nav: perfect for your van down by the river
If you're prone to hitting the road in a trailer or camper, you probably know that the road isn't exactly made to accommodate to your less-than-dainty vehicle. In a bid to express its deepest sympathies (and, you know, make money), TomTom is unveiling a device made specifically for caravan owners. In addition to offering the standard TomTom Live features for keeping up to date with traffic and weather reports, the Go Live Camper and Caravan includes warnings for narrow roads, low bridges and the like, and it also highlights the nearest rest stops and other points of interest for road trippers. And because you probably trade in that motorhome for a smaller set of wheels on occasion, TomTom lets you switch to a different profile, complete with customizable specifications for size, weight and speed. The Go Live Camper and Caravan will set you back £349.99, and as the price indicates, it's currently only set up to handle roads across the pond.
The Daily Grind: What's the worst you've ever been griefed?
Bad boys, bad boys, whatcha gonna do? Whatcha gonna do when griefers come for you? My grandmother warned me of a time when online hooligans would invade the sanctity of my gaming space and do anything they could to ruin my fun. Some feel that griefing is a legitimate type of play that gives them great satisfaction. I feel that griefers should be carefully rounded up, tagged, and shipped to a small desert island where they can smack each other over the head with coconuts and leave the rest of us in peace. Just about everybody's been griefed in an MMO at one point or another, whether by an overly antagonistic camper, a con artist who swindled you out of in-game gold, or that node stealer who stalked you and swooped in to grab the ore that was rightfully yours while you tangled with a nearby tiger. Today we want to hear your testimony of a time when another player actively tried to spoil your fun. What's the worst you've ever been griefed in an MMO? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
5th Ave. iPhone Who Farm campers leave store lacking iPhones, dignity
Heavily featured in the news leading up to the iPhone 3G launch, the Who Farm campers -- who hunkered down a full week early at the Fifth Avenue Apple store in Manhattan to promote organic farming or something silly like that -- seem to have fallen off the face of the earth after the Cube's doors were opened. None of the five hippies were seen emerging from the store with iPhones, and their leader's little apple-dropping "accident" (video is after the break) might have something to do with it. He was later seen being taken into the store with a police escort, according to David Jr., but wasn't seen from again. We're not trying to imply that these five organic farming nuts are currently tied up in a dark store room miles below the Fifth Ave. store, awaiting Steve Jobs' wrath, but we would like to know what happened to them, and if they ever got iPhones, so if you have any idea please let us know.
Philadelphia mayor caught camping for an iPhone
If we ran the world Philadelphia, it's highly unlikely that we'd camp out in the dismal rain for an iPhone like all those "normal citizens," but we've got to give props to John F. Street for roughin' like the rest of us. Apparently, Mr. Street set up shop earlier this morning and made up his mind to brave the inclement weather in order to be one of the first to snag an iPhone. Currently, he's waiting patiently along Ranstead St. at 16th St. in Center City to be third in line to purchase an iPhone from the AT&T store, and while we're sure such an influential character could have just paid someone off to do the waiting for him, the reward will be that much sweeter when 6:01PM rolls around.Update: Looks like the media descended on the mayor and the dude took off about an hour ago! Looks like someone else has his spot in line (now word on whether he's waiting for the mayor), but we'll have an update in our lineblog shortly.
AT&T preps landlords for iPhone campers
Those who've started taking notes in order to keep track of all the iPhone launch details still floating in can add one more, and thankfully for those worried about their own safety come next Friday, you'll be relieved to know that this one involves crowd control. Two documents outlining how managers should "prepare landlords for the iPhone launch" explain that stanchions (you know, those annoying cattle herders that keep you in order whilst waiting in the airport) should be made available at almost any cost, so it's pretty safe to say they know you (and your posse) are coming. Additionally, it's noted that AT&T stores will be staying open only until 10:00PM unless individual managers choose to keep the overtime clocks a-rollin', and venues located within enclosed malls will be closing at their normal times. Guess we can't blame 'em for trying to make us all happy campers.
PS3 hopefuls shot with BB's at Kentucky Best Buy
If you thought shacking up outside of a Best Buy in near-freezing temperatures (say, Ann Arbor, Michigan) for nearly two weeks is hardcore, imagine how folks waiting in Lexington, Kentucky felt when a drive-by shooter let the pellets fly into a group of PS3 hopefuls. Apparently bitter and distraught from not getting their name on a (shaky) pre-order list, enraged suspects drove by a Best Buy on Nicholasville Road and "injured four people with BB pellets," including a news reporter who was conducting an interview with one of the campers. Although none of the folks were seriously injured, we can't help but wonder who pulls off a drive-by shooting with cameras rolling, and moreover, did the "mildly wounded" individuals waiting in line forfeit their position to visit a hospital? The soldier in us says negative.[Via digg]
PS3 hopefuls, part III: Best Buy shoos away Burbank campers
You know, for a minute there, just a fleeting moment, we thought Best Buy was for serious about its attempt this year at making the procurement of a next-gen console a bit less of the painful, scarring memory that the Xbox 360 launch was for many. Sure, Best Buy still might have a few tricks up its sleeve to appease the next-gen faithful, but to us this newfound love and acceptance of console crazies was best represented by the burgeoning line of Burbank-campers. But no longer. After waiting 4 days for the campers to settle in, Best Buy kicked the whole group of its property on Friday afternoon. No word on whether the decision is from corporate, the local mall or the local Best Buy management, but we do know that it's 4 days of non-showering, job-quitting and engagement-postponing all for naught. A true modern tragedy.[Thanks, TJ B.]
PS3 hopefuls, part II
We'll try not to bother you with every single second of these guy's Best Buy exploits, but a few soundbites TG Daily picked up from the Burbank PS3 campers the other day were just too good pass up. Apparently one of the campers called in sick (for two weeks?), and had to postpone his engagement to divert the ring fund to a PlayStation 3, while another guy quit his job altogether. Hit the read link for a full video of these crazies, who fend off naysayers saying "They look at us like we have nothing to do... but we are getting a PlayStation 3." Well, we would sure hope so!
Breakfast Topic: Fun with campers
The humble camper is a life-form frequently encountered amongst the many zones -- often found in great numbers throughout high-level areas in particular. By sticking to one particular spot based on a number of factors -- primarily aiming to harvest particular drops for fun and profit -- campers cause high-level questers a lot of trouble. I've had numerous encounters with level 60 campers who decide that pulling every mob in the area, all at once, is a good tactic to maximise drops -- indeed it is, but when there are other players there waiting to complete a quest, it's not a particularly nice tactic. Of course, on PvP servers you can add ganking into the equation, making it often more fun for the would-be quester to give up rather than waste several hours on one quest.Have you had bad camping experiences? Any tips to deal with those who just refuse to budge? Or are you a camper, and willing to defend your stance?Asking politely is one way to deal with campers, but it only gets you so far -- nowhere, when it comes to the opposite faction. Irritating them so that they'll give up is another tactic that I've seen employed, but can't bring myself to try. Ultimately, there isn't much you can do to stop people camping, especially when they ignore you -- but don't dismiss them all as gold farmers without a second glance. Some may be questers just like you.
